TAMING THE TONGUE
Text: James 3:1-12
Introduction
1. Piccard and Richard Conniff writes in National Geographic that on January 12, 1997, two Swiss men, Bertrand Piccard and Wim Verstraeten, set out to be the first to CIRCLE THE EARTH in a balloon. Their aircraft was called the Breitling Orbiter, and it was high-tech masterpiece, complete with solar power panels and an airtight capsule for pressurized flight at high altitudes that would enable them to fly the jet stream at two hundred miles and hour. Price tag: $1.5 million.
Shortly after liftoff, however, calamity struck. With the cabin sealed tight and pressurized, the pilots suddenly noticed strong kerosene fumes.
Soon they e-mailed their control center: "Kerosene’s coming through each pipe on both inside tanks and we cannot tighten them any more. It is a nightmare....Answer quick."
They were advised to lower their altitude, open the capsule, and hold on until they could reach the coast of Algeria. The fumes proved overwhelming, however, and they were forced to ditch in the Mediterranean and lost the craft.
The cause of the kerosene leak? A clamp, like those used on an automobile radiator hose, had failed. Price tag: $1.16.
It doesn’t take much to undermine a great enterprise.
God intends that the Christian life be a triumphant journey, but often we allow small things like our tongue to scuttle God’s grand plan for us.
2. "We have two ears and one mouth that we may listen the more and talk the less." - Greek Proverb. However, all too often we talk more than we listen.
3. James tells us that taming the tongue is...
A. Important For Leaders
B. Small But Powerful
C. Can Contradict Itself
4. Let's all stand together as we read James 3:1-12
Proposition: To become mature follower of Jesus we need to learn to watch what we say.
Transition: James tells us that taming the tongue is...
I. Important For Leaders (1-2).
A. Not Many Should Become Teachers
1. James begins his teaching on taming the tongue by saying we shouldn't rush to become a teacher in the church.
A. Leadership in the church, while it looks cool, brings with it great responsibility, and at times, great heartache.
B. When I first felt God calling me into ministry some accused me of doing it because I wanted attention. Well 20 years later, I can honestly tell you I have received some attention I could have done without!
2. Look at what James warns in v. 1, "Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged more strictly."
A. James taught that people should not rush to become teachers in the church.
B. Many of his status-conscious readers would have desired the reputable position of teachers in the community.
C. Coming hard on the heels of chapter 2, one of the most honorable “works” that would immediately come to the Jewish mind would be the position of teaching.
D. James has in mind a greater emphasis on spiritual growth and self-control before someone assumed the role of a teacher.
E. Teachers will be judged by God with greater strictness. Teaching authority carries with it greater responsibility.
F. As works reveal the depths of a person’s faith, so words show the depth of a person’s maturity.
G. The teacher is held to greater accountability because of his or her key teaching role (Barton, 1082).
3. Now you might be asking yourselves, "okay, so what does this have to do with taming the tongue?" Well James uses this admonition as a lead in to his conversation about taming the tongue by saying, "Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way."
A. We all make many mistakes or slip up when we are off guard.
B. We all stumble, but our most frequent failures occur when we are speaking. Because we are prone to make mistakes in our speech, we need to be even more careful to let God control what we say.
C. He is capable of guiding our motivation, our thoughts, our very choice of words, and even the impact our communication has on others.
D. Many people may think that it is impossible to control their tongues, but most people haven’t even begun to try.
E. The ability to control the tongue is the mark of true maturity for the Christian. When Jesus confronted the religious leaders about their accusations against him, he said that out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks—showing that what is inside of a person affects what they do with their speech (Matthew 12:33-37).
F. He also said that we must give account for every careless word we utter (Matthew 12:36).
G. People who can control their tongues will be able to control themselves in every other way.
H. The wisdom and love from God and the self-restraint given by the Holy Spirit will help us exercise this control (Barton, 1082).
B. Watch Your Mouth
1. Illustration: A tart temper never mellows with age; and a sharp tongue is the only edged tool that grows keener and sharper with constant use. (Washington Irving)
2. Leaders need to be cautious with their words.
A. Proverbs 21:23 (NLT)
23 Watch your tongue and keep your mouth shut, and you will stay out of trouble.
B. One of the worst mistakes that a leader in the church can make is to run off at the mouth.
C. We need to be watchful as to what we say and to whom we say it.
D. It's easy to get over a bad decision or a mistake while teaching, but it's much harder to take back something we have said.
E. As leaders in the church we need to make sure that we thing before we speak.
F. And the same goes for social media. Think before you tweet, post or snap. Because people will judge you based on your words.
G. Ask yourself if this is something I would say to Jesus?
H. Ask yourself if this is giving you a good or bad witness to your non-Christian friends or relatives?
Transition: Next James tells us that the tongue is...
II. Small But Powerful (3-6).
A. The Tongue Is A Small Thing But...
1. Here James makes the point that even though the tongue is small in comparison to the rest of the body it packs a big punch.
2. He starts out by illustrating small things that have a big impact. He says in vv. 3-5, "We can make a large horse go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth.
4 And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong.
5 In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches. But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire."
A. Bit . . . Rudder . . . Tongue . . . Spark. What do these things have in common? They are all small but very effective controllers—they each direct something much larger than themselves.
B. James is building a case for the damaging power of our words. We see this evidenced in history when dictators such as Adolph Hitler, the Ayatollah Khomeini, Joseph Stalin, and Saddam Hussein used their words to mobilize people to destroy others.
C. We see it evidenced in church splits and in the ruining of a pastor’s reputation.
D. And we see how verbal abuse in the home can destroy the very personhood and character of spouses and children.
E. Satan uses the tongue to divide people and pit them against one another.
F. Idle words are damaging because they quickly spread destruction.
G. We dare not be careless with our words, thinking that we can apologize later, because even when we do, the damage remains.
H. A few words spoken in anger can destroy a relationship that took years to build.
I. Remember that words are like fire; they can neither control nor reverse the damage they do (Barton, 1082).
3. Now James shows the point of his illustration in v. 6, "And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself."
A. The tongue is full of wickedness because of the damage it can cause in the world and bring to the rest of the Christian community.
B. The uncontrolled tongue can turn one’s life into a blazing flame of destruction. This means that the tongue can destroy all the good that we’ve built up over a lifetime.
C. While we have ministered for years and years and seen abundant fruit, if we fail to control the tongue, we can undo all the good we have built up in our years of ministry.
D. Our speech has a power that few other capabilities possess, for our tongue can be set on fire by hell itself.
E. Flames of hate, prejudice, slander, jealousy, and envy seem to come from the very lake of fire where Satan will be punished (Barton, 1082).
F. Satan himself is the igniter of a fiery tongue; therefore, any person who sets his tongue ablaze is following the tongue of Satan, of the fire of hell itself.
G. This person demonstrates a hellish, Satanic heart and not the heart of Christ.
H. The fire of hell, is never to be seen in the life of a believer. A believer's tongue is never to speak forth the fiery flames of hell's destructive words—words that are ugly, cursing, unclean, angry, divisive, unkind, suggestive, or tale bearing.
B. Can Cause Great Damage
1. Illustration: Ken Sande, in his book on conflict resolution, The Peacemaker, gives the following definition for gossip. If you are taking notes, this is the definition you will want to write down. "To gossip means to betray a confidence or to discuss unfavorable personal facts about another person with someone who is not part of the problem or its solution."
2. Gossip only leads to trouble!
A. Proverbs 25:9-10 (NLT)
9 When arguing with your neighbor, don’t betray another person’s secret.
10 Others may accuse you of gossip, and you will never regain your good reputation.
B. Gossip can destroy a friendship.
C. Gossip can destroy a family.
D. Gossip can destroy your reputation.
E. Gossip can destroy your ministry.
F. Gossip can destroy a church!
G. If you're not a part of the problem or the solution keep your mouth shut!
H. If it's none of your business or the business of the person you're talking to keep your mouth shut!
I. If you promised not to tell anyone, don't!
Transition: James also tells us that the tongue...
III. Can Contradict Itself (7-12).
A. Full Of Deadly Poison
1. Now James illustrates just how dangerous our tongues can be.
2. In vv. 7-8 he says, "People can tame all kinds of animals, birds, reptiles, and fish, 8 but no one can tame the tongue. It is restless and evil, full of deadly poison."
A. Although people can tame all kinds of animals . . . no one can tame the tongue. Why? Because it is an uncontrollable evil, full of deadly poison.
B. The tongue is always capable of evil; it remains untamed throughout life. With our tongues we can lash out and destroy.
C. By recognizing the tongue’s deadly capacity, we can take the first steps to keep it under control.
D. No person can tame the tongue, but Christ can. To do it, he goes straight for the heart and the mind.
E. We should not try to control our tongues with our own strength; we should rely on the Holy Spirit. He will give us increasing power to monitor and control what we say.
F. For when we feel offended or unjustly criticized, the Spirit will remind us of God’s love and keep us from reacting.
G. The Holy Spirit will heal the hurt and keep us from lashing out.
H. We can make sure we are in the Spirit’s control by incorporating Scripture into our lives and by asking the Spirit to direct our thoughts and actions each day (Barton, 1082).
3. Now James gets into how contradictory the tongue can be. In vv. 9-10 he says, "Sometimes it praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God. 10 And so blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth. Surely, my brothers and sisters, this is not right!"
A. How strange that the tongue is able to speak praises to our Lord and Father at one time, and then it breaks out into curses against other people.
B. We should have the same attitude of respect for fellow human beings as we have for God, because they are created in his image.
C. Yet we have this horrible, double-sided tongue, so that blessing and cursing come pouring out of the same mouth.
D. Some people think that the only restraint against foul talk, calling people names, and bad language is social disapproval.
E. But God’s word condemns it. James says that the reason we should not curse people is because they have been made in God’s likeness.
F. We should not use any word or name that reduces them to anything less than their full stature as God’s created beings (Barton, 1083).
4. Finally James says, "Does a spring of water bubble out with both fresh water and bitter water? 12 Does a fig tree produce olives, or a grapevine produce figs? No, and you can’t draw fresh water from a salty spring."
A. A spring cannot have both fresh and bitter water. Although different kinds of water won’t bubble from the same opening,
B. Christians’ speech can be very inconsistent. One time we may speak in a way that honors God and another time in a way that gives Satan power to operate.
C. We can choose how we will respond. If we do not, we give Satan an opening to control us.
D. We should produce the kind of fruit that we’ve been created and regenerated to produce—the fruit of righteousness—just as you would expect to pick olives from an olive tree.
E. Only a renewed heart can produce pure speech. If the source of our thoughts and actions is the love of God in our lives, then we will not be able to generate the kind of negative speech that James warns us against (Barton, 1083).
B. Speaking Out Of Both Sides
1. Illustration: General Robert E. Lee was once asked what he thought of a fellow officer in the Confederate Army, an officer who had made some mean-spirited remarks about him. Lee thought for a moment, then rated him as being very satisfactory. The person who asked the questions seemed troubled. "But General, I guess you don’t know what he’s been saying about you." Oh yes, answered Lee. I know. But I was asked my opinion of him, not his of me." Words are like dynamite, if used properly and in the right place they are beneficial. Used improperly and in the wrong place they can produce a lot of damage. Which words would you like to hear? I love you, your important to me, thank you, you look nice. Or you disgust me, I hate you, never speak to me again. James wants us to understand something here this morning. Words are powerful They can tear down or build-up. They shape our lives and define who we are by the words we use.
2. Let your words build up and encourage!
A. 1 Thessalonians 5:11 (NLT)
11 So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing.
B. Let your words to one another be words that foster love and peace.
C. Let your words to one another be words that make people feel encouraged and blessed.
D. Let your words to one another bring goodness and light.
E. Let your words to one another make the one hearing them feel closer to the Lord and to you.
F. If your words don't build up, don't say them.
G. If your words don't encourage, don't say them.
H. If your words aren't filled with love and concern, don't say them.
I. If your words aren't going to bring them closer to Jesus, don't say them.
J. Remember that God will hold us accountable for every idle word we speak!
Conclusion
1. "We have two ears and one mouth that we may listen the more and talk the less." - Greek Proverb. However, all too often we talk more than we listen.
2. James tells us that taming the tongue is...
A. Important For Leaders
B. Small But Powerful
C. Can Contradict Itself
3. THREE THINGS TO REMEMBER...
A. YOUR WORDS ARE POWERFULL, SO MAKE THEM COUNT!
B. BE A BLESSING AND NOT A CURSE!
C. GOD HEARS WHAT YOU ARE SAYING!
